Sunday, March 26, 2017

Creative Democracy - The Task Before Us in the
Era of Clinton v. Trump

Founded in
1935, when American education was under attack from the right, the Society aims
to keep alive John Dewey's commitment to critical and reflective intelligence in approaching
pressing problems in education and culture. It is fitting, then, at the
beginning of the presidency of Donald Trump, that we come together to reflect
on its implications for democratic life.

What are the challenges to a vibrant and healthy
democratic life? In an essay late in life, “Creative Democracy – The Task
Before Us” John Dewey argued that democracy was more than a political
institution; it was a way of life - as dependent upon communication and
mutuality within families, friendships, schools, churches, workplaces, and
other strands of civil society as on the government.

Today, in many countries including our own,
democracy is under attack. Anti-democratic leaders at home and abroad stir the
pot of mistrust and hate among social groups. The Secretary of Education
promises to undo our commitment to the common school. It is appropriate,
therefore, to return to Dewey and consider anew how democratic life and
democratic education can be reclaimed.

This
workshop discussion explores how we might theorize democratic education in the
current political and educational situation. Recent events have renewed our
focus on the relationship between democracy and education. The positive
connections between democracy and education are under strain. We have witnessed
how social media preys on Americans’ low levels of political knowledge,
creating narrow channels for the flow information, and increasingly,
disinformation. We have witnessed increasingly polarized political discourse
and the rise of anti-democratic sentiments, as well as attacks on public
education. This workshop gathers outstanding scholars who will offer insights
on the role of civic learning, broadly understood, in this current context.
What should be the goals of civic learning? What qualities do we want young
people, college students, and professionals to develop? What is the
relationship between civic learning and broader social institutions? What are
the best methods to meet these individual and social goals? And finally,
underscoring these questions, what is the relationship between theory and
practice in theorizing democratic education?

The panel
discusses approaches to teaching about “democracy and education” and works
towards some common insights. While each panelist engages with John Dewey’s
ideas, the workshop focuses upon democracy and education, not Dewey’s book by
that title. This workshop engages with what it means pedagogically to treat creative democracy as the task before us in
higher education. While developed against the background of Trump v. Clinton,
and addressing current events, workshop concerns extend beyond the recent
election cycle.

The panelists, all leading educational thinkers,
consider the lessons to be drawn from the recent election and Trump presidency and
the tasks before us in reconstructing democratic education.

Panelists:

Peter Levine, Tufts University

Walter Parker, University of Washington

Winston Thompson, University of
New Hampshire

Diana Hess, University of Wisconsin

BREAK

School
and Society Forum (Kyle Greenwalt, Chair) | 2pm-3:45pm

Communities in Schools San Antonio (CISSA) and
the John Dewey Society are proud to host the seventh annual School &
Society Forum. The forum is a public space embracing dialogue, interaction, and
deliberation concerning school and society issues across multiple
stakeholders—P-16 teachers, policymakers, administrators, scholars, parents,
students, community educators, & interest groups—drawing upon John Dewey’s
commitments to democratic schooling. Students, parents, and CISSA organizers
will lead a panel discussion about issues facing the San Antonio community.

Harry Boyte is
one of today’s most prominent democratic theorists and activists.He has worked with many foundations, and
non-profit educational, and citizen organizations in the United States and
abroad concerned with community development, citizenship education, and civic
renewal. In the 1960s, he worked for the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. as a
field secretary with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in the Civil
Rights Movement.

Boyte is the
author of nine books on citizenship, democracy, and community organizing, and
his writings have appeared in more than 100 publications including the New York Times, Perspectives on Politics, Kettering
Review, and the Wall Street Journal.

BREAK

JDS
Reception | 6pm - 7:30pm

****

Friday, April 28 2017

Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center | Room 5

Meetings and Working Sessions | 8am-12 noon

Emerging
Scholar Working Session (Melissa Bradleyi) | 8am-9am

Education and
Action Working Group (Kathleen Knight Abowitz and Harry Boyte) | 9am-10:30am

We invite abstract submissions (600 words) to read a 30-minute paper on the Main Program. The local hosts are Brian E. Butler and Grace Campbell. They are collecting the 600-word abstracts for committee consideration. Please submit your proposals to his address (bbutler@unca.edu). He can also answer questions about local accommodations.

“Come on down a day or two early – Asheville is beautiful in early June!”

Theme:

This summer seminar brings together a “continental congress” of philosophers, and other related stakeholders, to discuss the future of philosophical practice (within and beyond the academy).

We are interested in any paper proposal that engages with our theme, broadly construed.

For example:

• Genealogies of the problems facing professional philosophy

• Philosophy beyond the traditional philosophy department

• The economics of practicing philosophy (e.g. philosophical coaching, and other models)

• The role of public philosophy in an uncertain age

• Intersectional, decolonized, and other alternatives to mainstream philosophy

• Reading, Teaching, Practice: Philosophical Curriculum in the Twenty First Century

In addition to our regular conference schedule, other activities are planned such as:

a Society of Philosophers in America (SOPHIA) panel. SOPHIA will host a panel intended to introduce people to what we do. SOPHIA’s mission is to build communities of philosophical conversation, locally, nationally, and online. We will invite key local community members to come talk about “Ethics at the End of Life.” We will begin our discussion with a short reading: “It’s Over Debbie,” on the basis of which we will all be on the same page. For more information about SOPHIA and our panel, visit PhilosophersInAmerica.com, or

a Graduate Philosophy Pilot Program Working Group: a working group, meeting throughout the weekend, to plan the foundations for a new pilot graduate philosophy program. The goal is to create a program that can address the structural, fiscal, and economic problems facing the current professional model of doing philosophy. The working group will create a steering committee to continue after the meeting. The Graduate

Philosophy Pilot Program Workshop will start with an evening introductory meeting on Thursday July 13, 2017. If you are interested in participating in the working group contact Eli Kramer at: Eliornerkramer@gmail.com;

and The American Institute of Philosophical and Cultural Thought (AIPCT) (www.americanphilosophy.net) will host an informational and discussion panel about the future of cultural thought, as a whole, led by Randall Auxier of Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

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About 'Social Issues'

Social Issues is a blog maintained by the John Dewey Society's Commission on Social Issues.

The Commission exists to encourage reflection on pressing social, cultural and educational issues and to support communications among members of the John Dewey Society and concerned publics on these issues.